Hiding a House in the Apocalypse - Chapter 346



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Hiding a House in the Apocalypse Episode 348

142. Coin (1)

Looking back, they all become memories, but obvious mistakes and errors are like shards of glass embedded in the body and never go away.

A single word spoken without much thought is like a shard of glass to me.

I remember it as something that came out while chatting with a group of people who had gathered around me to pretend to be friendly after training.

In a place where team evaluations are included during evaluations and the weight of the evaluations is high, competent team members are bound to be popular.

Especially a guy like me who’s never missed a top spot.

At the beginning of the semester, before the new team assignments, guys holding new team formation applications gathered like clouds.

Since I was the type of person who always tried to keep my distance, I didn’t have anyone I was particularly close with, but I didn’t act like a jerk either.

All smoothly.

Since my hostility towards monsters was not enough anyway, there was no need to fight with my school friends.

In that situation, while I was having a conversation with the guys who had gathered to get me some beans, out of a sense of duty, the story of Kang Han-min came up.

“Kang Han-min? Why would you team up with a guy like that?”

Even though I was young, I still think my ideas were extraordinary.

“You can’t make a perfect team. There are bound to be one or two guys who hold the team back. I’m going to try putting Kang Han-min in the lineup to prepare for those situations.”

Even if I went back to that time now, my evaluation would not have changed.

Even in empty words, Kang Min-ha was below average.

Seeing him overcome Jang Gi-yeong’s bullying that bordered on gaslighting, his mental strength was acknowledged, but mental strength that is not matched by talent only puts not only his own life but also the lives of his teammates at risk.

The problem is that Kang Han-min was there.

Immediately after I blurted out those thoughtless words, my eyes met with Kang Han-min’s, who was approaching me with the same application form.

In that split second, Kang Han-min’s eyes changed from moment to moment.

From anticipation and longing to shock, disappointment and frustration.

Kang Min-gang turned his back and ran away, shrugging his shoulders, as if a plant that had been growing vigorously had suddenly stopped breathing.

“What? Isn’t that Kang Han-min?”

“Why is he here? Is he trying to team up with Park Gyu?”

“But what you just said? I think I heard it.”

I felt a triumphant smile spread across the lips of the guys surrounding me.

It was a brief incident.

At the time, I thought it would be nothing more than a minor incident that would soon be forgotten.

But the memory stirred in my mind like shards of glass embedded in my body, causing an eerie pain.

So, it was a relationship that was buttoned up wrong from the start.

From that false beginning, our relationship continued and eventually seemed to end when I took off my clothes and started building a bunker.

Now, four years after the end of the war, Kang Han-min returns to me with more vivid memories than ever.

A_FOOL : Status.jpg

There was just one photo left there.

A wide-angle background shot taken from a high altitude.

I know that scene.

This is Jeju’s scenery.

A wasteland below a ridge that was always covered in fog, not far from the outpost where I had briefly stayed.

The fog is clearing as if it were a lie.

Only once did I see the fog clear.

There, the cause of the destruction of this world stood proudly, like a nightmare brought to reality.

Crack.

But you can’t find that crack in the photo.

It was wiped clean.

“······.”

Yes, that’s right.

The crack closed.

*

“Park Gyu. Why are you looking so dazed?”

There are no special rules in our area, but we decided to at least eat breakfast together.

This was planned with the intention of providing a brief opportunity for communication and a justification rather than forcing it together by holding a morning roll call.

Each person brings their own meal, but the rule is to attend even if there is nothing to eat.

Cheon Yeong-jae, who lives separately, also participates in breakfast.

In that situation, I guess my face didn’t look very good to other people today.

I can feel the eyes watching me.

“······I couldn’t sleep well. My body feels sore.”

I can’t tell the truth.

Whether the crack has closed or not is entirely my own judgment.

The post by a user presumed to be Kang Han-min was buried beneath the cries of the dead and floated away.

This is quite natural, given that the photo itself is ambiguous and very few people can understand the meaning contained in it.

The fact that the post was unrelated to the current hot topic on the bulletin board may have also contributed to its burial.

The post was soon deleted.

I don’t know if the author of that post is Kang Han-min or not, but I have a vague idea why it was deleted.

Perhaps the author of that article thought it was a trump card and revealed valuable information, but then got angry when the article didn’t get a single comment, let alone become popular, and deleted it?

I know because I’ve had similar experiences.

The problem is that there hasn’t been much news since then.

Let alone our bulletin board, there is no news even on Jeju Intranet.

Click- click-

I surfed the internet with a blank expression on my face.

Viva! Apocalypse! and the Red Archives bulletin board.

On both bulletin boards, conversations continue as they would on a daily basis.

Viva! Apocalypse! tells the story of the reconstruction of Seoul, and the Red Archive bulletin board has a new patch update.

I can’t find any information about the crack anywhere.

After being in this frustrating situation for several days, fatigue naturally appeared on his face.

“······.”

I vaguely know the method.

If Jeju doesn’t release the information, we can just mess with the intranet here.

As you know, the security of Jeju Intranet does not seem to be that strict.

The problem is the method.

Now that Valentine is gone, there is no way to access the confidential folders on Jeju Intranet.

Weak security is something that only experts like Valentine can see, but it doesn’t apply to laymen like me.

All I can do is push bulletin board users who will grow into Necropolis through the backdoor that Valentine prepared while he was still alive.

But if we were to invade the Red Archive bulletin board here, it would probably only increase the security level of Jeju Intranet.

Valentine left behind a manual with friendly notes and instructions for when he died, but unfortunately, it is beyond my ability to interpret.

People are needed.

Dead1832 (KOR): Is there anyone in the metropolitan area who has knowledge about hacking and backdoors? If so, please answer (with examples and comments, and generous compensation to be paid)

Dr. Emily: Is there anyone in the metropolitan area who has knowledge about hacking and backdoors? If so, please answer (with examples and annotations, and a generous amount of cases to be paid)

I looked for people who could give me hacking advice in two places: Necropolis and Viva! Apocalypse!

Some users responded to my suggestion,

Dead885: I’m a former white hacker. I’ve won several awards in competitions. But I have a group here. Two women. One man. One child. They look like Viva users. Do you have a bunker?

Dead13314: Where is that? I want to see the equipment first. Oh, but how many people are there?

As you can see, he is a scammer looking for a place to stay.

Maybe they are marauders who will kill me and take my place.

“······.”

He sighed and leaned back in his chair.

In fact, there is a model answer.

There is a friend on our bulletin board who is good at programming and has knowledge in IT and networks.

But that guy is a bit awkward.

If the replacement for that noble Valentine is a rotten person like Foxgame, wouldn’t it be a bit odd?

The positive thing is that Fox Games and I have recently reached an imperfect reconciliation.

I don’t know what the intentions are, but it’s clear that Fox Games wants to restore its relationship with me recently.

The same thing happened with the black dog incident the other day.

I don’t know if that mutant dog is still alive, but I don’t think I can waste time like this and find the person I want somewhere else.

“······.”

Knock knock

I had no choice but to send a message to Fox Games.

SKELTON: How about the black one?

I think he’s already dead.

The reason we purchased rat poison from South America in bulk is because it is effective, unlike ours which has reduced toxicity.

Anyway, if war breaks out, the bigger problem will be the destruction of the ecosystem and our precious food being eaten by rats.

Mutations don’t necessarily mean stronger resistance to poison.

The only difference is the size of the body and organs, and the proportional lethal dose.

If Fox Games had properly administered the poison, the black cat would have died by now.

Message from Foxgames: Oh. Skeleton!

I wonder what it will be like.

Message from Foxgames: He’s alive! I did a stomach wash and gave him vitamin K tablets as you suggested, and he’s getting better little by little. He understands what I say now and swallows food well.

Are you alive?

As if to dispel your doubts, Foxgame sent you a photo.

Message from Foxgames: (Photo)

“······.”

If it’s not a composite, the mutation dog appears to still be alive.

Honestly, I was surprised.

Not only is it an effort to save a mutant dog, but it’s also a matter of having the supplies to provide the necessary treatment.

Well, this guy had a lot of money.

He also had a bunker that cost more than mine.

Anyway, I thought that the story would go better than expected thanks to that dog.

SKELTON: I have a favor to ask.

A message from Foxgames: Please? What kind of favor? If it’s from Skeleton, of all people, then I should do it. Yeah, I don’t know what an old, sick man like me can do for you, but what is it?

I don’t want to be in debt to this guy.

I see the future.

I guess he’ll try to use this as an opportunity to act friendly again.

I’ll even ask you some tricky requests.

But there is another way.

If you look closely, you might find it, but considering the time and effort put into it, it’s not cost-effective.

It’s a bit expensive, but it’s right to ask Fox Games for help.

SKELTON: Do you know how to hack or something?

Message from Foxgames: Hacking?

A message from Foxgames: I haven’t done this since I hacked into my professor’s computer in grad school.

SKELTON: There is a reference left by the predecessor.

Message from Foxgames: Really? Send it to me.

I sent the file.

A reply came a while later.

Message from Foxgames: Hmm.

SKELTON: Is it difficult?

A message from Foxgames: No, it’s a comment so kind that it’s strange that it can’t be done? Who made this?

SKELTON: I had a good friend. He’s in a good place now.

Message from Foxgames: That’s too bad. Anyway, if the security level is the same as when this example was written, I could do it. But you know.

Message from Foxgames: Jeju Island?

That’s why I hated it.

To entrust this job to this person.

But sometimes things in the world go in directions we cannot predict.

Message from Foxgames: (Foxgames Interest) This looks like it’ll be quite rewarding, huh?

Fox Games showed interest.

Well, I guess you can guess what it means.

A friend who is just as hungry for attention as I am.

As expected.

Message from Foxgames: By the way, is this okay to open?

A message from Foxgames: Not now, but later when things are going well.

Reveal your desires transparently.

“······.”

Knock knock

SKELTON: OK.

On the contrary, it is a good thing.

At least in this case I don’t want any attention.

*

There is a story that Dajeong told when she was in our area.

“You know what?”

Hong Da-jeong, an internet expert, was also well-versed in emoticons.

“Emoticons used differ from person to person.”

For example, something like “^^” may feel a bit outdated, but it is said to be an emoticon with no major basic flaws.

Paid emoticons provided by XX Talk are used by everyone, so they are treated as common.

Character emoticons in the form of image files used in places like the Red Archive bulletin board are said to be frequently used and addicted to by the otaku class.

But the worst thing is not the emoticons from the Red Archive bulletin board.

“Anyone who uses this has a 100% chance of being of poor quality.”

That’s the “:)” series.

Dajeong’s internet knowledge is creepily accurate.

Foxgame:

Why is this not good?

Hong Da-jeong says the following:

“Are those guys who want to look like they’re halfway through their age usually wearing something like that? They all have a basic cool-headedness and mental victory. I always try to avoid people who wear that.”

In any case, for closer communication, we installed “Fox Stock,” which was produced directly by Fox Games.

He said that he made it in his spare time because he couldn’t recover his reputation as a developer even though he sold his son for pity by ruining the game.

In my opinion, it is almost identical in design and function to the obsolete messenger apps used before the war.

I bet they stole the source code from somewhere.

Anyway, it’s good that a middle-aged man who uses the worst emoticon selected by Hong Da-jeong, the “:)” series, is showing his enthusiasm.

Fox Game: I tried to break in using the method left by the person named Valentine, and it turned out to be an automatic door, just like the comment he left.

Fox Game: Did they really hire Jeju Island engineers based on connections? Dude~. If I were the interviewer, I would have made you cry and snot on the spot. Seriously. I wonder which school you graduated from. :/

SKELTON: So how long do you think it’ll take?

Foxgame: Wait a minute. The black one wants to see me? I’ll leave for a moment.

Fox Games: Sit back down!

Foxgame: Even if it’s a parachute, the confidential folder is still protected. It must have been left there by the people who built the SI. It can be penetrated with the tool Valentine made, but as the note says, there’s a risk of getting caught. It’s not that high, but given the nature of this kind of work, once you get caught, it’s hard to find a second chance, right?

Skeleton: Really? Then there’s no other way?

Fox Game: Still, it seems like they are keeping an eye on their superiors. When I checked the log, it seemed like they do regular maintenance once a month.

Fox Games: They just pretend to work by making useless patch files lol

Foxgame: I’m trying to break in before and after that regular maintenance.

Skeleton: (Skeleton grins) Really?

Fox Game: Oh, but you never know what’s going on in the world, right? Even the salary Lupin kids sometimes work hard without any reason. According to the log file, the security manager is monitoring it 24 hours a day. That’s what’s bothering me :/

Skeleton: Then let me shake it over here.

Foxgame: ?

Fox Games: How?

“······.”

Knock knock

Skeleton: (Skeleton ㅇㅅㅇ) There is a way.